3 Life Lessons from Habakkuk

Habakkuk is one of my favorite short books in the Bible. It shows us despair and faith and how they can both be experienced by the faithful! Here are three great lessons from this book.

One – It’s Okay to Ask Hard Questions

  O Lord, how long shall I cry for help,

and you will not hear?

       Or cry to you “Violence!”

and you will not save?

  Why do you make me see iniquity,

and why do you idly look at wrong?

       Destruction and violence are before me;

strife and contention arise.

  So the law is paralyzed,

and justice never goes forth.

       For the wicked surround the righteous;

so justice goes forth perverted.

Habakkuk 1:2–4 (ESV)

Sometimes we are frustrated. That’s okay! Life is not fair and that gets to you once in a while. To express that frustration and anguish is alright.

We should never feel guilty about asking questions out of these emotions. Sometimes we may think that those feelings reflect a lack of faith when really they only reflect our humanity. God knows us; he created us. So when we are in crisis, he is not alarmed or offended by the questions that come from our hearts.

Two – It’s Good to Wait for an Answer

I will take my stand at my watchpost

and station myself on the tower,

       and look out to see what he will say to me,

and what I will answer concerning my complaint.

Habakkuk 2:1 (ESV)

If we ask the question, we should wait for an answer. How often do we express our frustration, anguish and anger then go about our day without waiting to see if God will answer us? We may find an answer to our circumstances if we would discipline ourselves to wait on God.

When the answer comes, we may be responsible to share it.

 And the Lord answered me:

       “Write the vision;

make it plain on tablets,

so he may run who reads it.

       For still the vision awaits its appointed time;

it hastens to the end—it will not lie.

       If it seems slow, wait for it;

it will surely come; it will not delay.

Habakkuk 2:2–3 (ESV)

Three – We Should Always Rejoice

  Though the fig tree should not blossom,

nor fruit be on the vines,

       the produce of the olive fail

and the fields yield no food,

       the flock be cut off from the fold

and there be no herd in the stalls,

  yet I will rejoice in the Lord;

I will take joy in the God of my salvation.

  God, the Lord, is my strength;

he makes my feet like the deer’s;

he makes me tread on my high places.

Habakkuk 3:17–19 (ESV)

God is God no matter what our circumstances are. He has everything under control. He is always good and faithful. Because of that, we can rejoice. We rejoice in the sovereignty and majesty of God. We rejoice because of his mercy, grace and love. We rejoice because he is good and will orchestrate even the most difficult trials for our good!

Get Serious

The entire Bible is filled with lessons on how we are to live. Even very short books can give us lessons to apply to our lives.

Today, find one lesson from God’s Word that can encourage you and make you a better follower and then share it with someone.

Now available is the complete: Transformational Life Lessons from the Bible in Kindle format. Click here for more information.